Casein Still Life

"Studio Arrangement," casein on panel, 6x8, private collection

One of the joys of learning to make pictures is trying different mediums and methods.

Many artists routinely draw with graphite but a great many use other mediums like charcoal, ink, crayons of various kinds, and metal point (a rare one). 

Over the years my primary painting medium has been oil paint, but I've experimented with most other paint mediums, including acrylics, gouache, and watercolor (all water media) plus another relatively rare paint called casein. 

Casein paint is made using a casein-oil emulsion as the vehicle. Casein, of course, is milk protein and the oil it's emuslified with is usually linseed oil. When I use it I'm pleased with its opacity and handling. Like acrylics, casein dries very quickly. And also like acrylics, casein is waterproof after it dries. In fact casein was the choice for quick-drying paint until the advent of acrylic vehicles. 

The painting posted here served me a dual purpose. First, it gave me practice in setting up and making a still like painting. Second, it was an early, fairly experimental use of casein. The view is of my glass studio palette on a grey tabletop near a big studio window. The light seemed to spill over the sill and onto the arrangement at that time of day. The entire work was done alla prima. The multiple pieces of glass allowed exploration of the properties of glass--transparency, opacity, refraction, reflection and so on. 

Historical Building

The subject of this plein air watercolor is Hoyt Sherman Place, which is not only a historical building but also a long-serving art gallery and performance venue. The original building was built as the home of Hoyt Sherman, whose older brother was William T. Sherman, the famous Civil War general. Hoyt Sherman was an early settler who became deeply embedded in the political and social life of Des Moines. In the late 19th century he built a brick home northwest of downtown. In later years a large auditorium addition turned his private home into its current form. 

"Hoyt Sherman Place," wc/ink on paper

Last Saturday the sketch group decided to spend some time drawing or painting the grounds and site. I sat under an ancient tree and made this image. The auditorium addition is just visible on the right side; the left side is (mostly) the original house.  

As always, my approach is to make a graphite drawing with more or leas detail, trying very hard to capture perspective and proportion. After that I usually add watercolor, then ink touches or emphasis.  

Mug

"Mugshot (glasses)," oil on panel 16x12

Police mugshots are fascinating and often overlooked images. Some years ago I made a number of portraits based on mugshots, some of them of relatively famous criminals, some of unknown miscreants with memorable faces. The crimes of this particular person are now unknown because I've lost the source. Still, there is something in the face that seems maimed and enraged so my suspicion is that he was a violent person. 

 

Iowa State Fairgrounds

One of  my favorite spots for sketching is the Iowa State Fairgrounds, on the east side of Des Moines. Every year the Fair generates more than a million in attendance over it's 10 day run, the crowds topping a hundred thousand most days. But the rest of the year the old fairgrounds are peaceful and shady under hundreds of old trees surrounding huge exhibition buildings. One of my particular favorites is the Agriculture Building, which hosts all manner of exhibitions from flowers to enormous pumpkins. It's a giant two-story masonry affair, and on it's south side is a wonderful demonstration garden run by the local Master Gardeners. 

"Discovery Garden," wc/ink on paper

Last Saturday the sketchers went nearly en masse to scout spots to draw and paint. I chose a shady spot with a decent breeze and did a corner of the garden. As ever, I did a modified version of the background building and surrounding garden in graphite, then painted the scene, trying to capture both color and value. Showing three-dimensional volume is difficult for me in watercolor unless I manage to pay sufficient attention to my darks. 

Behind the Museum

The Des Moines Art Center has three connected buildings surrounding a courtyard. The first building was designed by Eliel Saarinen, a well-known Finnish architect, in the 1940s. About twenty years later, the Art Center commissioned I.M. Pei, who would become world famous for his work, which includes remodelling the entrance to the Louvre. The third building was designed by Richard Meier, famed for deisgning the Gettyn Museum in California as well as many other buildings.

"Behind the Museum," oil on panel, 12x16

The Pei Building is in the brutalist style--angular, unpainted concrete, unusual shapes, and so on, with an array of enormous windows facing south down the slope of Greenwood Park and its rose garden. My Saturday sketch group meets there weekly before dispersing, and sometimes we stay in the garden behind the museum. This painting is a studio version of a watercolor sketch I did there one Saturday last year. The Pei Building is the angular, pale ochre building in the background.  

Pei did something clever with the poured concrete. Concrete is composed of cement, sand, and aggregrate (commonly called gravel); Pei used aggregrate identical to the midwestern limestone of the first building, which gives the concrete a warm yellowish tone.  

Sketch Outing

"Toward Downtown," wc/ink on paper, 5x8

As we always do, the Saturday sketchers met at the Des Moines Art Center last weekend, then spent time sketching around the city. Sometimes most of us go to the same location but other times we disperse. This time I was planning on working among the taller buildings downtown. But as I drove toward the city center the view above seemed inviting, so I pulled over and did yet another Des Moines skyline, The site was a busy thoroughfare but I changed it somewhat, making the street seem quieter. This particular angle on the skyline is somewhat different than some others I've done. 
 

Spire

"Spire," wc/ink on paper, ~8x3.5

As readers of this blog might imagine, the subject of this watercolor sketch dominates the skyline in Des Moines. It's the 801 Grand Building, sometimes called the Principal Building, situated in the center of the cluster of downtown high rises. Being the tallest building in the state, it's not surprising that you can see it from nearly any place nearby. A while back I wanted to visit a downtown garden but found it closed, so I sat in a convenient spot and did a small study of the 801 building in my pocket sketchbook. 

The paper in this tiny book is a bit lighter than I usually employ for watercolor. The color muddiness of the skyscraper is likely the result.